After two consecutive failed launch attempts, the manned Starliner capsule successfully launched on Wednesday, June 5, carrying two NASA astronauts into low-Earth orbit. Boeing is testing the capsule’s ability to transport crews to the International Space Station (ISS), with Starliner docked at the ISS.
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In development since 2010, Starliner is part of a $4.3 billion contract with NASA. Perhaps surprisingly, this is only the sixth vehicle owned or financed by the space agency to be used throughout the agency’s history.
The space agency has existed since 1958, however, only a select few spacecraft have transported NASA astronauts to space. Boeing’s Starliner now joins a fairly exclusive list; Here are all the spacecraft that have flown with NASA crews on board.
The Mercury Capsule
On May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American astronaut to go into space aboard the Mercury space capsule. The suborbital flight was NASA’s first attempt to dive into celestial waters, with the main objective being to evaluate human capabilities in a space environment and safely return astronauts to Earth.
Project Mercury, the first American human spaceflight program, ran from 1958 to 1963. Pictured above, Project Mercury astronaut John H. Glenn, Jr. is seen entering his Mercury Friendsship 7 capsule before launch on the 20th. February 1962. Glenn became the first American astronaut to orbit the Earth. during his almost 5 hour flight. Glenn’s flight was interrupted by a faulty signal indicating a problem with the heat shieldbut returned to Earth safely after three orbits.
The Gemini capsule
After the astronauts got a taste of orbital space, it was time to train them for the Moon. Project Gemini served as a bridge between Mercury and Apollo.
With the Gemini missions, NASA achieved the first meeting of two human spacecraft in orbit. In this photo taken on December 15, 1965, the Gemini VI spacecraft can be seen through the hatch window of Gemini VII at an altitude of 160 miles (258 kilometers) above Earth.
Unlike the Mercury spacecraft, which was barely big enough to house an astronaut, the gemini capsule had two astronauts on board. Through their missions, astronauts could change the capsule’s orbit, work outside the spacecraft and remain in space for at least two weeks.
The Apollo Command and Service Module
On July 20, 1969, NASA astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin Jr. became the first to land on the surface of the Moon.
The Apollo 11 crew traveled aboard the Apollo Command and Service Module (CSM)called Columbia, which transported them to lunar orbit. From there, the couple got on the lunar module, which they used to land on the surface of the Moon, while pilot Michael Collins remained aboard the CSM spacecraft in orbit. The module (LM) lifted off from the Moon on July 21 and the crew returned to Earth three days later. In this sense, NASA used two crewed spacecraft for the mission: CSM and LM, although the latter could only return the astronauts to space from the lunar surface.
The photo above was taken on December 14, 1972 and reveals a view of the CSM, piloted by Apollo 17 astronaut Ronald Evans. , from the Lunar Module, which has astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt on board.
The space shuttle
NASA’s iconic space shuttle era spanned 30 years and operated from 1981 to 2011. The partially reusable low-Earth orbit spacecraft flew a total of 135 missions, carrying astronauts to orbit, repairing hardware in space , and even helping to build the largest structure in Earth’s orbit, the ISS.
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The space shuttle not only increased NASA’s access to space, it also inspired a new era in space flight. In the photo above, the space shuttle Discovery It is seen from the ISS after the two spacecraft separated on March 7, 2011.
The Soyuz crew
After the retirement of the space shuttle, NASA relied heavily in Russian Soyuz spacecraft to transport its astronauts to the ISS. The Soyuz was designed for the Soviet space program and has been operational since the 1960s. Unlike its orbital counterparts on this list, this spacecraft was not developed by or with the help of NASA but still deserves an honorable mention. The spacecraft is launched from Kazakhstan and takes about six hours to reach the ISS. TO Seat swap agreement with Russian space agency Roscosmos We occasionally see NASA astronauts still aboard the Soyuz.
SpaceX Crew Dragon
NASA needed to stop relying so heavily on the Soyuz for trips to the ISS, so it forged partnerships with private companies to help with the launch. their astronauts into space.
At the time SpaceX was awarded its NASA contract, it was the least expensive $2.6 billion proposal.Boeing was seen as a more reliable company with a better track record. It’s safe to say that things have changed drastically since then, with SpaceX launches its eighth crew to the ISS in March 2024 while its counterpart is far behind.
from SpaceX dragon spaceship It is capable of carrying up to seven passengers to and from Earth orbit and measures 26.7 feet tall (8 meters). It is equipped with two parachutes to stabilize the craft after re-entering Earth’s atmosphere, plus four main parachutes to decelerate it before an ocean landing.
Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner
The 4.2 billion dollarsCST-100 Starliner It was first conceived in 2010, building on a long legacy of designing and building spacecraft for Apollo. The spacecraft measures 14.8 feet (4.5 meters) wide and can hold up to seven astronauts, and is about the same size as the Dragon crew capsule.
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However, unlike SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, Starliner has traditional manual controls and switches, as well as touch screens. He Flight test with crew (CFT) will take NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams aboard the Starliner.
Orion
As NASA prepares to take astronauts to the Moon, the space agency developed a crew capsule to carry its next-generation explorers into lunar orbit. The spacecraft has yet to perform a mission with actual astronauts on board, but the ship is crew-rated and ready for the task.
he orion capsule It is designed to transport a crew of four astronauts beyond Earth orbit and accommodate its passengers for up to 21 days. Orion already flew to the Moon and returned during the Artemis 1 uncrewed test flight in late 2022, and is currently preparing for its first crewed flight in September 2025: the long-awaited Artemis 2 mission. He said, the capsule still has a some outstanding security issuesincluding an unstable heat shield, which could jeopardize their next mission.
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